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Consul general to NY to demit office
BY HAROLD G BAILEY Observer writer
Monday, January 30, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — Jamaica's diplomatic mission here could have a change in leadership soon as Consul General Genieve Brown-Metzger is set to demit office as early as next month, according to reliable sources.
Reached for comment on Friday, Brown-Metzger would neither confirm nor deny the report. "I am not going to discuss that," was all she was prepared to say.
But impeccable Observer sources said that the controversial diplomat will be leaving the post soon. It could not be ascertained whether Brown-Metzger had offered to leave or whether she had been told by the new People's National Party administration that she will not be retained. It is not uncommon for heads of overseas missions to be replaced when a change of Government takes place.
The Observer has also been told that a replacement for Brown-Metzger has already been identified and that an announcement is to be made soon.
Relations between Brown-Metzger and some community leaders have been strained for most of her tenure. She has faced criticisms for her style, which critics say has prevented some members of the Jamaican community from participating in issues important to the Diaspora here.
But in a June 2011 interview, Brown-Metzger dismissed the criticisms, arguing instead that "many of them amounted to personal attacks".
She also pointed to the inability of her office to undertake certain functions as a result of budget and staff cuts by the then Bruce Golding-led administration. Brown-Metzger, who was appointed to the board of the prestigious Penn Relays recently, worked in the private sector before her appointment as consul general.
Since the change of Government, at least one Jamaican organisation here has urged the new administration to appoint somebody "the entire Diaspora will feel comfortable with".
According to the Jamaica National Movement (JNM), which has urged the Government along that path, it is concerned that "there seem to be a jockeying by some people who we believe are not suitable for the position".
The JNM made the claim during a packed meeting in Brooklyn after the December 29 general election where it suggested that consultations be done if the next consul general is to be appointed from candidates here.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz1kzRpq4p2
BY HAROLD G BAILEY Observer writer
Monday, January 30, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — Jamaica's diplomatic mission here could have a change in leadership soon as Consul General Genieve Brown-Metzger is set to demit office as early as next month, according to reliable sources.
Reached for comment on Friday, Brown-Metzger would neither confirm nor deny the report. "I am not going to discuss that," was all she was prepared to say.
But impeccable Observer sources said that the controversial diplomat will be leaving the post soon. It could not be ascertained whether Brown-Metzger had offered to leave or whether she had been told by the new People's National Party administration that she will not be retained. It is not uncommon for heads of overseas missions to be replaced when a change of Government takes place.
The Observer has also been told that a replacement for Brown-Metzger has already been identified and that an announcement is to be made soon.
Relations between Brown-Metzger and some community leaders have been strained for most of her tenure. She has faced criticisms for her style, which critics say has prevented some members of the Jamaican community from participating in issues important to the Diaspora here.
But in a June 2011 interview, Brown-Metzger dismissed the criticisms, arguing instead that "many of them amounted to personal attacks".
She also pointed to the inability of her office to undertake certain functions as a result of budget and staff cuts by the then Bruce Golding-led administration. Brown-Metzger, who was appointed to the board of the prestigious Penn Relays recently, worked in the private sector before her appointment as consul general.
Since the change of Government, at least one Jamaican organisation here has urged the new administration to appoint somebody "the entire Diaspora will feel comfortable with".
According to the Jamaica National Movement (JNM), which has urged the Government along that path, it is concerned that "there seem to be a jockeying by some people who we believe are not suitable for the position".
The JNM made the claim during a packed meeting in Brooklyn after the December 29 general election where it suggested that consultations be done if the next consul general is to be appointed from candidates here.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/...#ixzz1kzRpq4p2
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